Night and Blood
by DarkAmber112
Summary: When Night Elf Hunter, Riku, helps out a Blood Elf Rouge, what happens when the Blood Elf wants to protect her as payment? How's Riku going to get around with this guy clinging to her?
1. I will be your guard!

A/N: Hello, people! I am back after a long time…with another new story! Will I ever be able to stick to one to the end? The world may never know…Solitude is sort of on hiatus right now, I've found some problems with it that need fixing…and I'm just not feeling as inspired about it as I used to.

Well, one of my friends suggested that I do a WoW fic…I dunno, that just sounds like a really good idea right now. It's good practice for using original characters (not that I'm going to use OCs as main characters in anime fics.) Anyway, enough of my rambling! On with the fic!

**Disclaimer: **I OWN NOTHING…Well, my plot…BUT THAT'S IT, I SWEAR!!

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**Chapter 1: I Will Be Your Guard!**

It was a clear day in the lands of Teldrassil. The beasts of the forest were enjoying the warmth of the summer breeze, not paying a whole lot of attention to the frequent adventurers that would pass by. The citizens of these lands were also finding it difficult to sit still on a day like this. Most of them were either fulfilling numerous amounts of quests, training with various class and profession instructors, or just enjoying the day to the fullest by lounging around and hanging out with friends. Days like these also seemed to completely sweep away any uneasiness about the possibility of a horde invasion.

Riku Hanako, a young Night Elf Hunter, was on a trip delivering a package from Dolanaar (A/N: Did I spell that right?) to Darnassus. She had short, blue hair that rose just barely above her shoulders. Her skin was a soft, lavender color. Her dark blue eyes fitted to her features nicely, giving her a kind, but firm appearance. In body, though, she wasn't very well developed. The bulky, bearskin armor didn't really help her figure, either. Truth to be told, she really didn't care if she was considered plain. As long as there was a mission to complete, her looks was the very last thing on her mind.

By now, she was only about ten minutes away from her destination. She absent mindedly reached to scratch her nightsaber, Neko, behind the ear when she noticed her cat tense up. Riku glanced at him, and saw that he was glaring into the forest's direction.

"Is there something there, boy?" she asked, slowly reaching for her bow. Neko hunched his shoulders, and stealthily moved into the direction he was staring at. Riku followed closely behind him, her arrow ready to fire if need be.

They came into sort of a clearing, with one rather large tree standing in the middle of it. Finally, she could see what her cat had been sensing. Tangled in the many branches and vines that grew on the centered tree, was a Blood Elf Rouge!

Keeping a distance, Riku aimed her arrow carefully at the enemy. Neko was still silently advancing forward, preparing to attack the man if he falls from the tree. The Blood Elf seemed to be struggling, determined not to let those accursed branches get the best of him. Unfortunately, this didn't keep him occupied enough not to notice the Hunter. As his eyes wandered over to her, a relieved smile spread across his face.

"Hey! You there!" he shouted. "Would you mind cutting me loose? I've somehow managed to get myself stuck up here, and I cannot reach my own dagger. So if you would be so kind…" the Blood Elf cut himself short, noticing the arrow pointed in his direction. "Um…what are you planning to do with that?"

Riku ignored his question. "State your business! If you cooperate, maybe I won't have to hurt you in the end!"

He gulped. "H-hurt me? Why would you want to do that?""

"You insolent fool! We're on opposite sides! You're an intruder!"

His eyes widened. "Waah, an intruder? I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to intrude! No wonder you're mad at me! I knew I should have held on to that hippogryph better!"

Riku raised her eyebrows. _What the heck is up with this guy? Is he for real?_

"Well," he continued, "If you help me out of this, I promise I'll leave right away if you want me to! Just please don't hurt me!!"

"How do I know I can trust you?"

He smiled reassuringly, "Aw, c'mon! Do I look dangerous to you?"

Riku sighed, and glanced at Neko. "What do you think?"

The cat shrugged his shoulder, and nodded. He didn't fully trust the Elf, but he didn't seem to pose as a threat.

The female Elf swung her bow back onto her shoulders, pulling out her dagger. "Alright then, I suppose I can cut you down..."

The Blood Elf's eyes sparkled with delight. "Oh, thank you! You're so kindhearted, miss! Thank you for having mercy on me!!"

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered.

Riku made her way up the tree with utmost caution, suspecting that this is most likely a trap of some kind. Neko remained on the ground, his guard completely up. She slowly cut each branch and vine that immobilized the Blood Elf, and he fell to the ground with a loud 'thud.' Neko kindly took a step back, as to not get squashed by the Rouge. Riku leapt off of the tree, landing right next to him.

She was finally able to get a better look at him. He had long, blonde hair worn tightly in a ponytail. His skin was bright, and pale. The shimmer in his green eyes seemed to dance with happiness, as if he didn't have the slightest care in the world. His features sort of had a childish look to them. He wore leather Rouge armor that was an extremely dark shade of red.

_Well…I guess he is kind of cute…Wait, what am I thinking?! This guy's part of the Horde!! Why did I even help him out in the first place?! I should have just left him there! _

Riku was too busy mentally slapping herself to notice the Blood Elf get up, and brush the dirt off of his pants. Turning to the Hunter, he gave her a big, toothy grin.

"Thank you so much!" he said excitedly. "I really should repay you somehow…is there anything you've always wanted?"

The Night Elf snapped out of her thoughts, "What? Ah-no, no you don't need to do anything for me! Honestly!"

"But I do! You helped me out of that tree! I have to do _something_! Hm…Oh, I have an idea!!"

Riku was almost afraid to ask, "What is it?"

His grin widened. "I'll accompany you on your journey!"

She almost had a heart attack, right then and there. "WHAT?! NO-no, please, I don't need the extra help! Really! I'm fine!"

"Aww, why not?" he whined back. "I'll protect you with my life! Honest, I will! I want to be your guard!"

"M-m-my guard?! N-no, I really think-"

"Pleeeaaaaase?!"

Before she could decline him again, he gave her the saddest puppy dog eyes she had probably seen in her entire life. A huge blush crept all over her face.

_S-so cute…Argh! Damn it all! Why does he have to give me that face! How am I supposed to say 'no' now?!_

Sighing, Riku massaged her temples. Could she really let a Blood Elf follow her? How could she get him through Darnassus without getting attacked by a guard? With this in mind, she decided to try one more time.

"Hey, didn't you say you were going to leave as soon as I cut you down?"

"Well, I changed my mind!"

"Changed your mind? Well...The last time I checked, it wasn't really a Rouge's job to become someone's guard just because they helped them out…"

"What do you mean? It should be anyone's job! If someone saves one's life, that person owes them a debt! What better way is there than to protect that person's life in return?!"

"But…It wasn't even a huge deal! I just helped you out of a tree!"

"It's a big deal to me! If you hadn't, I could have died! There's not exactly much food or water up there!"

_This is getting me nowhere! _

"Look," she decided that she might as well tell him the truth, "Blood Elves and Night Elves aren't exactly on best terms with each other. If you follow me, one or both of us could end up getting imprisoned or killed. Now, you may not be like the other blood elves, but I can assure you that the guards around here aren't going to give you a chance to explain yourself like I have. I just can't have you following me, ok?"

"Is that what you're worried about?" he chuckled, and jabbed a thumb to his chest. "No need to fret! We Rouges usually are pretty good at disguising ourselves! Heck, that's part of our basic training! If I make myself look more or less like a Night Elf around others, can I protect you?" He decided to slap his puppy dog eyes back on. "Preeeety pleeeeaaase?!"

Riku figured that she had lost the battle. Rolling her eyes, she said, "Well…I suppose, but ONLY if you keep your true identity hid-"

"OH, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!" he practically pounced on her, squeezing her into a tight hug that was making her loose some of the feeling in her legs. "I promise that I won't let you down!"

"U-um, thanks but…I can't…breathe very well…could you let me down?"

He finally realized that he had indeed lifted her above the ground a few inches. Neko was giving him a 'do-anything-to-her-and-I-won't-hesitate-to-bite-your-head-off' glare. She gasped for breath when he finally let go of her.

"Well, since I'm guarding you now…" he said a little shyly, "can I have your name?"

"Oh, yeah," she was blushing a bit, "It's Riku. How about you?"

His grin widened, "The name's Ayame! It's a pleasure doing business with you, Riku!" He held out his hand to her, which she hesitantly shook. "Anyways, now that the introductions are done, I will proceed with my disguise!"

He pulled a couple of herbs, and a small bowl out of one of the pouches attatched to his belt. He mashed the herbs together well, as to make them into more of a powder, and added a bit of water that he also carried with him. He stirred the substance until it turned into sort of a greenish color, and consumed it in one gulp. Almost immediately, his ears grew immensely in length, and his soft, playful features grew harder, and tougher. He looked like a Night Elf.

"Better?" he asked, his tone still the same.

"Yeah, much," Riku replied.

_I know he's supposed to look like a Night Elf...but he's just not as cute as he was! Oh well, at least his personality and voice hasn't changed...wait a second, what am I thinking?! Stupid brain! It's not like I like him or anything! He just wasn't about to leave me alone unless I let him follow me!_

But Riku quickly dismissed any bad thoughts about Ayame when he gave her his award-winning smile. "Shall we go, then?"

"Yeah," in an effort to hide her blush from him, she turned to Neko, "C'mon, boy. Let's head to Darnassus."

The Nightsaber shrugged, and followed the two. He still didn't fully trust Ayame, so he made sure that he walked right in between the two of them on the road.

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**DA: **Alright, that's chapter 1! I think I might actually be able to stick to this for awhile, it was alot of fun to write! Epecially Ayame's character, I felt myself giggling alot when I was writing him! The chapter itself may not be much...but at least it introduces the main characers, right?

**Neko:** I guess you could put it that way.

**DA: **What the-When did you start talking?

**Neko:** When you gave me a voice for the author's notes. You know that you're stuck with me now, right?

**DA: **Oh, fine.

**Neko: **Mrow, you're just huffy 'cause you can't get the last spin right for that Hare Hare Yukai song you're learning the dance to.

**DA:** How did you know about...you know what? Forget it. Anyway, please review and tell me what you think! (Oh, and I know there probably isn't some potion that can make you look different. I couldn't think of any other way, so I made that up.) Special thanks to popcorncomics for her inspiration!! I advise you all to check out her stories when you're done with this!

**Neko: **Ja ne, see you next chapter!


	2. Her Purpose

**DA:** Wow, this is the very first time I've uploaded another chapter to anything within a week...I didn't think that was possible...

**Neko:** It's because you love me so much, isn't it?

**DA: **Yeeeaaaah...Suuure. If you want to see it that way, then be my guest.

**Neko: **Hey! Well if you're going to be THAT way, then I'm not doing the disclaimer for you!

**DA:** Fine by me. Hey Ayame! Would you mind doing the disclaimer for me?

**Ayame:** Yay! DarkAmber does not own World of Warcraft! But she brought us to life anyway, so we all appreciate her hard work!

**Neko: **Tch, suck up.

**DA: **Shut up, Neko. Now, on with chapter 2!

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**Chapter 2: Her Purpose**

The two elves had finally arrived to their destination. Ayame, who hasn't seen the Night Elf capital before, was busy gawking at every detail within Darnassus's walls.

"You guys have a bank that's shaped like a bear?" the blonde asked excitedly. "That's so cool! Ooooh, look at all of the different buildings! What's that really big one over there?"

"That's the priest's temple," Riku smiled at him. _He really is just like a little kid…_

"Really? Woooow…So, where are we headed?"

"Well, first of all, I have to deliver this package to one of the Guards…then maybe after that, they'll send me on another quest of some sort…"

"What if they don't have another quest ready for you right away?"

"Then I'll probably end up just doing some research…"

"On what?"

Riku's features saddened. Before she could reply, a female Darnassus Guard ran up to them.

"There you are, Riku! I've been waiting for you! You still have the package with you, right?"

Riku nodded, and held it out to her. "It's right here."

"That's good. Really, all I needed was to see that you still have it. I would really appreciate it if you would take it to my friend in Stormwind, ok?"

The hunter's eyes widened. "All the way to Stormwind? I dunno, I've only been there once, and I forgot to open the flight paths-"

The Guard's pleading look cut her off. "Oh, please! I don't know anyone else I can send right now! I promise I'll pay you a good price!"

_Damn, why do I always fall for the look?_

Riku sighed, "Well…I guess I could…"

"Great!" she grasped Riku's hand firmly. "I'll be awaiting your return to distribute your pay. Make it easier on yourself, and remember to open all of the flight paths this time!"

The hunter rolled her eyes. "Yeah, all right."

"By the way…" the Guard's eyes had finally fallen on Ayame. "Who's your friend?"

The Blood Elf smiled, "I'm Ayame! I'm going to be protecting Riku from now on!"

"Oh, really?" she smirked in Riku's direction. "Is he your boyfriend?" she whispered to her. "He's awfully cute!"

Riku blushed, "Huh? No, no, we're not going out…I helped him out of a tree, so now he's following me around. Nothing's going on!"

"Are you sure? You're sounding defensive!"

The blush deepened, "Y-yes, I'm sure!"

It was the Guard's turn to roll her eyes. "If you say so. I suppose I should let you guys be on your way, then. Be careful out there in the wetlands, ok?"

Ayame and Riku saluted her in unison. Just as the two of them and Neko were walking in the opposite direction, the guard popped up with one last statement that made the three of them freeze in their tracks.

" Wait a minute, hold up! There's something funny about you, Ayame!"

Both Elves went as pale as a ghost. "Wh-whatever do you mean, M-Miss?

The Guard looked at him hard in the eye. She then examined him with utmost intensity. Riku's heart was beating a mile a minute.

_This is bad, this is very bad! What if she finds out he's a Blood Elf? What would happen to him? She can't possibly see through his disguise, can she? I don't think I'd be able to tell the difference…_

Neko was even tensing up a fair amount. Ayame getting caught would mean loosing the hand that feeds him as well! He couldn't let anything happen to Riku!

But as the Guard took another breath to speak, everyone snapped out of their own thoughts. "I thought something looked different about you!"

_Oh no!_

"…How in the world do you get your skin to stay so soft looking?"

…_Huh?_

"Seriously! I've tried every product known to Elf! Nothing works! You wouldn't happen to be a Herbalist, would you?" Ayame nodded. "Great! Do you think you could whip up whatever you use for me sometime?"

"Um, I guess-"

"Awesome! It doesn't have to be now, I have to go anyway. I'll see you guys when you get back, ok? Bye!" With that, she ran off.

Ayame turned to Riku. "She's kind of scary…"

The hunter nodded, "Tell me about it…"

_That was WAY too close! I guess this means we're going to have to be pretty careful from now on…_

Neko nudged his owner's hand. Riku looked at her cat, and scratched him behind the ear. "Well, I suppose we better stop at my place first. I need to pack a couple of things before we head out."

"Ok."

Riku's place wasn't huge, but it could probably house at least two people. It had a small kitchen, one bathroom, a medium sized living room, and two small bedrooms. Various paintings and posters decorated the walls, most of them containing some sort of critter or beast.

Ayame grinned, "I see you really like animals!"

Riku smiled back, "Yup! Why else do you think I became a Hunter?" she leaned down to give Neko a quick hug. "I don't exactly know how well I'd be able to tolerate this guy if I didn't have any love for him in the first place!" The Nightsaber licked her face in response. Ayame kneeled by Riku and started petting Neko as well.

"You know, I like this side of you."

Riku blushed a deep crimson, "Wh-what do you mean?"

"When I first met you, I kind of got the impression that you were more of a serious person." Ayame slapped a hand on the Hunter's shoulder. "But while you were talking just now, I realized how easy it is to be around you! I think it's going to be a lot of fun if we stick together, don't you?"

She lowered her head a little in an attempt to hide her ever reddening face. "U-um, y-yeah," she shook her head, and stood up. "Well, I'm going to my bedroom to get my stuff. Feel free to wander around, it should only take a minute or so..." and with that, she left for her room.

Ayame walked around the living room with Neko following closely behind him. It wasn't until about his fourth trip around the room that he noticed a picture of Riku and a couple of other Night Elves standing alone on a shelf. It was very well drawn, whoever the artist was had obviously been practicing for a while. Besides Riku, there were five other Night Elves. Two of them appeared to be females, while the other three were males. The six of them stood with broad grins on their faces. The Rouge didn't have to wait long before he heard Riku's door open. He turned to face her.

"Hey, Riku!" he said cheerfully, pointing to the picture. "Are these friends of yours?"

Riku sighed, "I figured you'd notice that..." she turned her head away from him. "Yeah, they're my friends...We had known each other since we were in school training for out classes. We did all of our quests together…"

Ayame gave her a sympathetic look, "What happened to them?"

The hunter brought her eyes up to his, "About a year ago, a huge Horde army invaded Darnassus. Apparently it was one of the worst invasions that our city had endured. If we didn't have the amount of back up that we had, Darnassus would have been done for. Anyway, I fought my hardest along with my comrades, but they ended up getting captured." Her eyes glistened, and she turned her back to the Rouge. "So now whenever I'm not on a quest, I research the different areas and dungeons of the Horde. I have to find a way to get them back…even if they're not alive anymore, I still want to see their faces one more time…They were my best friends…"

Tears were already streaming down Ayame's face. He wrapped the Night Elf into a tight hug. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I promise I will do everything in my power to help you get them back! Don't be sad anymore, ok?" The blonde slowly let her go, and gave her a big thumbs-up. "We're going to do this thing with a positive attitude! So turn that frown upside-down! I refuse to let you be lonely anymore!"

Riku wiped away the few tears that had found their way into her eyes. She smiled at him, "Thanks, Ayame…I really appreciate all that you're doing for me…"

"Aww, no problem!" he hugged her again.

_I guess…I guess I could live with having him around. Maybe all of the troubles that we go through just to keep him with us will be worth it… _

Neko just sat, and watched the two of them from a distance. He decided he would let them stay like that for awhile longer. As much as he hated to admit it, the Blood Elf may be just the thing his owner needed right now…

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**DA:** Hmm...this chapter seems shorter than my last one...Sorry about that guys, it just seemed like it needed to end here. I promise that I'll try to make the next one longer!

**Neko: **Hey! Why are you making it seem like I'm ok with that Blood Elf touching my owner! I'm not ok with that! Change it right now!

**DA: **Ehem, who's the author, here? Your opinions change nothing!

**Neko: **Rawr! Just for that, I'm not announcing the review thank-you's!

**DA: **Fine! Lazy cat...Riku, could you take care of that for me?

**Riku: **Sure thing! Virtual cookies go to: soren333, popcorncomics, ZabuzaHyuuga, and Little Liren. Thank you so much for reviewing our first chapter! You make us feel loved!

**DA:** R&R, see you next chapter!


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